Jeana Theron of production house Darling directed this :45 designed to put South Africans in the position of Doctors Without Borders medics on the frontlines where life and death decisions have to be made in a split second. In this case, a medic has a decision to make regarding two children with major, life-threatening injuries from a suicide bomber. That decision is then juxtaposed with the more mundane choices in everyday life–in this case someone trying to figure out what entree to have for a meal.
This PSA is part of a #ToughDecisions campaign created by TBWAHuntLascaris in Johannesburg in the hope that it will prompt more South Africans to donate Doctors Without Borders’ medical humanitarian work. The goal is to recruit 10,000 new regular donors.
Credits
Client Médecins Sans Frontiéres / Doctors Without Borders Agency TBWA\HUNT\LASCARIS, Johannesburg. Peter Khoury, chief creative officer/creative director; George Low, creative director; Lauren Mostert, copywriter; Candice Mcleroth, art director; Sandra Gomes, producer; Travis Spence, strategist. Production Darling Jeana Theron, director; Melina McDonald, Lorraine Smit, exec producers; Bryony Webster, producer; Lauren Wilensky, art director; Clive De Klerk, DP. Editorial Deepend Post Marcel Mouton, editor. Post Fresh VFX Stuart Botha, postproduction producer; Bradley Glossop, operator. Audio Sterling Sound Lorens Persson, audio engineer.
The Ad Council, partnering with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and AdoptUSKids, launched a public service campaign, created pro bono by Edelman, which aims to inspire prospective parents to consider adopting a teen from foster care.
This centerpiece PSA titled “The Rewards”--directed by The Hudson Dusters (Michael Kuhn and Niles Roth) via Greenpoint Pictures--spotlights real adoptive families who have personally experienced the mutual benefits of adoption. This longer form PSA (and cutdown versions) begins with a touching display of openness and vulnerability as adoptive parents reflect on their adoption journeys and their initial questions and hesitations about adopting a teen. Then, in a deeply emotional turn, the adoptive parents witness their children recounting the profound rewards of adoption in their lives. The teens speak of the love they share with their parents and how the decision to become a family is reciprocal. The campaign directs viewers to the AdoptUSKids website to learn more about adopting a teen from foster care.
